Gerakan to finalise list of candidates

KUALA LUMPUR: Gerakan will finalise its list of candidates by Friday when the party's Central Working Committee meets to discuss on the possible candidates for 12 parliamentary and 31 state seats.

Deputy president Datuk Chang Ko Youn said the party had for the past few weeks been meeting its state leaders to prepare the list, including screening of potential candidates by people with no vested interest.

"We will have the CWC meeting on Friday night to discuss the list. However, I don't think it will be announced so soon as the list needs to be submitted to the Barisan Nasional top leadership for consideration."

The party suffered its worst electoral defeat in the 2008 general election, retaining only two of the 12 parliamentary seats and four out of the 31 state seats it contested nationwide. It also lost every seat in its home ground -- Penang -- after governing the state for almost 39 years.

However, for this coming elections, the party is expected to put in extra effort to regain some of the seats in Penang.